Defective Military Earplug Lawyers are filing lawsuits across the country against 3M Company. The Texas Ear Plug Lawsuits allege that 3M Company furnished U.S. service members with earplugs that it knew were defective. Further, they allege that 3M dual-ended combat earplugs may have caused thousands of military service members to suffer from hearing related injuries. If you have suffered hearing related injuries due to your military service after using the 3M dual-ended combat earplugs, please report the adverse condition to a medical doctor as soon as possible.

Why Are Veterans And Active Duty Members Filing Texas Ear Plug Lawsuits Against 3M Company By Hiring A Defective Military Earplug Lawyer?

The Texas Ear Plug Lawsuits allege that the veterans and active members suffered hearing loss and tinnitus (ringing in the ears) because the 3M duel-ended combat earplugs did not properly protect them against loud noise and sounds such as gunshots, loud machinery, and battlefield explosion. In July 2018 3M agreed to pay $9.1 million dollars to the U.S. government. This was after a federal whistleblower lawsuit was filed which alleged that the testing of the earplugs was performed incorrectly. 3M did not admit liability in the whistleblower case.

“This settlement demonstrates the commitment of the Defense Criminal Investigative Service and our law enforcement partners to hold companies accountable for supplying substandard products, in particular products that could directly impact our service members’ health and welfare," said Special Agent in Charge Robert Craig, Jr., from the DCIS Mid-Atlantic Field Office. "DCIS protects the integrity of Defense Department programs by rooting out fraud, waste, and abuse that negatively affect the well-being of our troops.”

What Was Allegedly Wrong With The 3M Dual-Ended Combat Military Earplugs?

The whistleblower lawsuit and the Texas Ear Plug Lawsuits allege that the dual-ended combat earplugs are too short to form the correct seal in some user’s ear canals. This would allow more sound to enter the ear than expected. The sound then would increase the risk of hearing damage. Between 2003 to 2015 many of the branches of the military used the dual-ended combat earplugs as standard issue during foreign conflicts. A Defective Military Earplug Lawyer can assist you in determining if you can join in with the many other veterans and service members that have filed Faulty Ear Plug Lawsuits.

Texas Has A Large Population of Veteran and Current Service Members That May Be Eligible To File A Texas Ear Plug Lawsuit

Texas service members were deployed to foreign conflicts in large numbers between 2003 to 2015. Many of these troops may have been issued defective earplugs for use in combat zones and training. The State of Texas has the second largest active duty and reserve member personnel population in the United States. There were a total of 164,234 Texas active duty military and reserve forces as of September 2017, according to Defense Department personnel data. These soldiers are located at military installations across Texas. San Antonio is home to Joint Base San Antonio (Lackland Air Force Base, Randolph Air Force Base, Fort Sam Houston, and Martindale Army Airfield). Fort Hood is located near Killeen, Texas. Fort Bliss is located near El Paso, Texas. These are just a few of the major military installations that are located in Texas. If you were stationed at or deployed from one of these bases and suffered a hearing injury after using a faulty duel-ended earplug, you may be able to join the Texas Ear Plug Lawsuits by employing a Defective Military Earplug Lawyer.

Due to the large veteran and active duty population in Texas, many of the Ear Plug Lawsuits are being filed in Texas. More specifically, many of the lawsuits are being filed in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Texas, Austin Division. The military and veteran population is not evenly distributed across the nation. Texas data indicates that the South had the largest number of veterans in 2014. The Austin Division (of the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Texas) is right in the middle of some of the largest military bases in the United States. This makes Austin, Texas geographically central to this nationwide litigation. Jason S. Coomer is a Texas attorney with offices located in Central Texas and Austin, Texas.

The Joint Panel on Multidistrict Litigation (MDL) has decided to consolidate all of the 3M Combat Arms Earplug cases and assign them to Judge M. Casey Rodgers in the Northern District of Florida. Centralization in this district allows the Panel to assign this nationwide litigation to a forum with the necessary judicial resources and expertise to manage this litigation efficiently and in a manner convenient for the parties and witnesses. In an order dated April 3, 2019 the Joint Panel on Multidistrict Litigation stated that "Judge M. Casey Rodgers, to whom we assign these proceedings, is an able jurist with experience in presiding over a large products liability MDL. We are confident that she will steer these proceedings on a prudent course". Jason Coomer and his co-counsel have extensive experience in working on cases that have been consolidated into Multidistrict Litigation in various areas of the country.

The joint MDL panel also found that these actions (3M Combat Arms Earplug Products Liability Litigation) involve common questions of fact, and that centralization will serve the convenience of the parties and witnesses and promote the just and efficient conduct of this litigation. All actions involve common factual questions arising out of allegations that defendants’ Combat Arms earplugs were defective, causing plaintiffs to develop hearing loss and/or tinnitus. Issues concerning the design,testing, sale, and marketing of the Combat Arms earplugs are common to all actions. Centralization will eliminate duplicative discovery; prevent inconsistent pretrial rulings on Daubert issues and other pretrial matters; and conserve the resources of the parties, their counsel, and the judiciary.

What Causes Noise-Induced Hearing Loss In The Military?

Gunshots, weapons, and battlefield explosions

Aircraft (helicopters, jets, cargo planes)

Military vehicles (trucks, tanks, etc.)

Engine room of a ship

Aircraft carrier deck noise

Use of noise creating tools

What Are The Signs And Symptoms Of Hearing Loss and Tinnitus

Ringing in the ears (Tinnitus)

Muffled speech and other sounds

Difficulty understanding words, especially against background noise or in a crowd

When to see a doctor?

Talk to your doctor if difficulty hearing is interfering with your daily life. Age-related hearing loss occurs gradually, so you may not notice it at first. If you have a sudden loss of hearing, particularly in one ear, seek immediate medical attention. These injuries may be as a result of the use of faulty ear plugs during your military service. If you have been diagnosed, you may be able to join the Texas Ear Plug Lawsuits by hiring a Defective Military Earplug Lawyer.

How You Hear

Your ear consists of three major areas: outer ear, middle ear and inner ear. Sound waves pass through the outer ear and cause vibrations at the eardrum. The eardrum and three small bones of the middle ear amplify the vibrations as they travel to the inner ear. There, the vibrations pass through fluid in a snail-shaped structure in the inner ear (cochlea). Attached to nerve cells in the cochlea are thousands of tiny hairs that help translate sound vibrations into electrical signals that are transmitted to your brain. Your brain turns these signals into sound.

If you are searching the Internet for terms such as Soldier Hearing Loss Lawyer; Veteran Tinnitus Lawyer; Military Ear Damage Lawsuit; Faulty Ear Plug Lawsuit; Army Hearing Damage Lawyer; Artillery Tinnitus Attorney; Ringing In Ears Lawyer; or Military Hearing Aid Attorney, you might be eligible to join or file a Texas Military Ear Plug Lawsuit.

Defective Military Earplug Lawyer Jason S. Coomer handles military hearing loss cases. These cases include filing claims and lawsuits on behalf of veterans and active duty service members. A Texas Ear Plug Lawsuit or claim can potentially be filed if you suffered an ear injury, hearing loss injury, and/or ringing in the ear after using these earplugs. Was the noise-induced injury do to the use of the dual-ended combat earplugs during your military service? If so, please feel free to send an e-mail message to Defective Military Earplug Lawyer Jason Coomer or use our online form for any questions that you may have.